Glycemic index, glycemic load, carbohydrate exchanges, and carb counting are terms you may have heard. They sound interesting but what do they mean and just how do they apply to you or do you put them into practice.
Glycemic index is a term describing a comparison of the blood sugar spike that occurs in a person after eating plain sugar to whatever the particular food is. Glycemic load is the result of the glycemic index multiplied by the grams of carbohydrates. At this time there is insufficient evidence that eating a diet following low-glycemic guidelines can reduce average blood glucose. A recent systematic review revealed that a low-glycemic diet did not yield weight loss greater when compared to a variety of other diets. (1) It is recommended that people with diabetes do not follow a low carbohydrate diet. (2)
In fact, it is recommended that people with diabetes do not follow a low-carbohydrate diet and that they typically need 45-65% of their daily calories from carbohydrates, which is about 130 grams or 45 grams per meal (not snacks). (3) In order to do this, a person would have to read labels and count grams of carbohydrates, and that can get daunting.
This is where the carbohydrate exchanges come in very handy. (4) Carbohydrate exchanges use a simple method, each exchange counts for 15 grams of carbohydrate, and non-starchy veggies, meat, and fat are free! Looking at the carbohydrate exchange list you will see that foods are organized by food groups and you can memorize what amount of carbohydrate is in a given serving of food using the exchange system.
Make sure to choose whole grains as they offer the additional health benefit of phytonutrients and increased fiber, which can help keep cholesterol in a healthy range.
